arnold



(No Model.) 6 SheetsSheet 1.

. S. ARNOLD.

SEWING MACHINE. No. 378,645. Patented Feb. 28, 1888.

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(No Model.) 6 Sheets-Sheet, :2.

S. ARNOLD.

SEWING MACHINE. No. 378,645. Patented Feb. 28, 1888-.

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SEWING MACHINE.

No. 378,645. Patented Feb. 28, 1888.

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6 Sheets-Sheet 4.

(No Model.)

S. ARNOLD.

SEWING MAGHINE.

No. 378,645. Patentd Feb. 28, 1888.

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6 Sheets-Sheet 5.

(No Model.)

ARNOLD,

SEWING MACHINE No. 378,645. Patented Feb. 28, 18.88.

(No Model.) 6 Sheets-Sheet 6. S. ARNOLD.

SEWING MACHINE.

No. 378,645. Patented Feb. 28, 1888.

, v U5 zar/ SATTERLEE ARNOLD, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO ANNA M. ARNOLD, OF SAME PLACE.

SEWING-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 378.645. dated February 28, 1888.

Application filed May 22, 1886. Serial No. 203,028. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SATTERLEE ARNOLD, a' citizen of the United States, residing at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Sewing-Machines, of which the following is a, specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

My invention relates to certain improvements in a sewing-machine of the same general character as that shown and described by my Patents Nos. 331,106, 331,107, and 331,108, dated November 24, 1885, the principal object of the present invention being to produce a lock stitch machine capable of producing back or retrograde stitches, the advantages of which are more fully set forth in my application, Serial No. 201,084., filed May 4, 1886.

In the drawings, Figures 1 and 2 are sectional elevations from opposite sides of my improved machine. Fig. 3 is aplan View, partly in horizontal section. Fig. 4 is a front end view. Fig. 5 is a sectional detail of the horizontal feedshaft and its lifting device. Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail of aportion ofthe throat-plate and the feeding-wheel. Fig. 7 is a cross-section of the take-up lever. Fig. 8 is a sectional detail of the lever P and its spring holding-post. Figs. 0 and 10 are diagrams illustrating the retrograde stitch made by my machine. Fig. 11 is a plan View of the work'- plate, shpwing the pivoted shuttle holder swung outward or forward in position for the insertion or removal of the shuttle. Fig. 12 is a bottom view of the work-plate with the shuttle-holder and shuttle in operative position. Fig. 13 is an end view of the shuttleholder with the work-plate in section. Fig. 14. is a plan view of the base of the machine, (the work-plate being removed,) showing the looper-rod and its guiding fulcrum block. Fig. 15 is a plan view of the shuttle. Fig. 16 is a sectional detail on line 16 16, Fig. 15; and Fig. 17 is a detail view of the shuttle tensionspring and its frictional holding-sleeve.

A denotes the lower part or base of the frame of the machine, and B the bracket-arm thereof.

G is the driving-shaft journaled in vertical bearings in the rear portion of the arm 13, said shaft having at its upper end a driving or pulley wheel, 0, and at its lower end a crank-disk, a, connected by a link, 0 to a crankarm, c, of a short vertical shaft, 0', journaled in the postorbracket b,and connected with a looperrod, W, provided atits front end with a looper, w, for carrying the loops of needle-thread around a stationary shuttle, X, supported beneath the work-plate a by ashuttle-holder, Y,

pivoted to said plate.

The shaft 0 is out of line with the drivingshaft 0, so that it will receive a differential rotary motion from the uniformly-rotating driving-shaft, as in the machine shown by my patents above referred to. The looper-rod W is provided near its center with curved ribs to, embracing a guidingblock, 'w pivoted on a pin, 10 secured to or formed integral with a plate, 20, attached to the base A of the machine.

The shaft 0 will impart a variable move ment to the looper-rod W, as in my prior machine, so that the looper 10 will move rapidly after it has taken a loop of needle-thread and is spreading the same around the shuttle and slowly while the take-up is tightening the loop to complete the stitch. By providing the looper-rod with the curved ribs embracing the guiding-block 10 so that the fulcrum'point or central portion of said rod describes a curved path, the movements of the looper to at the forward end of said rod will be in a. circular path, the outer portion of which corresponds to a comparatively large circle and the inner portion to a very small one. Thus the hook or looper can be caused to travel around a horizontally'placed shuttle pointed at one end and adapted to receive at its other end a very large bobbin capable of carrying several times as much thread as the bobbins of many sewing-machines requiring loops of needle-thread as large as mine to encompass the shuttles or bobbins. It will thus be apparent that my looper-rod has a compound movement consisting of three series of movements to wit, a vibratory movement on its fulcrum-pin, a longitudinal sliding movement, and also a slight lateral sliding movement, the latter being due to the curved guide at its central portion formed by the curved ribs w and the block w embraced thereby.

' springarm, y. (see Figs. 12 and 13,) attached to the shuttle-holder to retain the latter in op erative position. Said arm y has a projecting fingerpiece. y on which the operator may press to lift the said arm from engagement with p the pin a, when the holder will be free to be swung outward. as in Fig. 11, to permit the shuttle to be inserted or removed. It is obvious that the shuttle-holder might be held in place by a stop notch or recess in the workplate engaged by a projection on the springarm 1/".

The shuttle tension-spring x is attached to a split sleeve, 0: tightly embracing the pin of, attached to the shuttle shell or body, said spring pressing directly on the thread of the bobbin 00*, as in the shuttle shown by my patent, No. 324,851, dated August 18, 1885, and serving also to retain the bobbin within the shuttle. The sleeve 00 is provided with a nick into which a screw-driver may be inserted for the purpose of turning the sleeve on its pin to adj ust the tension or the pressure of the spring 00 on the bobbinthread, or to swing the said spring so aside to permit the bobbin to be removed or inserted, the said sleeve being frictionally held in any position to which it may be adjusted by reason of its tight fit on the pin :0 I

It may be observed that the tension-spring :0 has a less pressure on the bobbin-thread when the bobbin is nearly empty than when the bobbin is full, owing to the fact that the mass of thread recedes from the spring-or, more properly, from the position originally occupied by the spring-as the thread is unwound from the bobbin, and thus the difference in the varying draft of the thread on the bobbin is automatically compensated for, the thread being drawn oif having more purchase on the bobbin when the latter is full than when it is nearly empty, as is well understood. This feature is shown in my patent, No. 324,351, dated August 18, 1885; but in the construction shown by the said patent no means are provided for varying the stress of the tensionspring by adjusting the same while in working posit-ion.

D is the needle-bar, reciprocating vertically in bearings e,forming part ofa swinging frame, E, attached by pivot-screws b to lugs b at the forward end of the arm B. The needle-bar is or may be reciprocated vertically in the same manner as in the machine embraced by my patents above referred to-that is to say, by a pitman, d, (operated by an eccentric, 0 near the upper end of the driving-shaft 0,) primary lever d, link d", secondary lever (1 and link at, connected to the needle-bar by a pin, (1, and collar 01".

On the shaft 0 is a worm, c meshing with a wornrwheel, F,journaled in a small bracket,

b attached to the arm B. This worm-wheel F is provided with a series of face-cams, f, against which bears the toe g of the lever G, pivoted to the arm B and connected by a rod, 9, to the swinging needlebar frame E. The lever G is preferably provided with a series of holes, g", as shown, so that by attaching the rod 9 thereto at different distances from its fulcrum more or less motion may be imparted to the frame E, as niay be desired. The toeg of the lever G is held in contact with thefacecamsfof the wheel F by a retracting-spring, 6', attached to the frame E and the arm B, the stress of the said spring being imparted to the said lever through the said frame and the connectingrod g.

To the hubf of the cam and worm wheel F is attached a feed-shaft, H, having (in the pres ent instance) its front bearing in a small bracket, h, through which passes a stud, it, provided at its outer end with the crank-han dle h"", and having at its inner end an eccentric connection (see Fig. 5) with the arm B, or the plate b attached thereto, so that by turning the said stud by the said handle the bevel gearwheel 71. on the forward end of the shaft H may be engaged with or lifted to be disengaged from the bevel gear-wheel i. The said gear-wheel iis attached to the upper end of a vertical shaft, I, snpported'byafeed hanger or bracket, J, attached to the arm B, said shaft I having at its end asmall bevel gear-wheel, t", meshing with a bevel gear-wheel, k, on the rear end of a shaft, K, supported by the lug j of. the bracket J, and the shaft K having at its forward end a gear-wheel, 7c, meshing with the feeding-wheel L.

The feeding-wheel L turns on a pin, m, supported bya bracket, M, the rear portion of which is pivoted on the shaft K, said bracket being provided with a projection or lug, m, against which presses a spring, m as in Fig. 4, to hold the feeding-wheel in yielding contact with the work-plate.

As the said wheel L bears on the throat-plate or work-plate adadapted to hold said wheel either in or out of working position.

That portion of the throat-plate which is adjacent to the feed-wheel is made slightly concave (see Figs. 4 and 6) at a, to correspond to the curvature of the periphery of the said wheel, or approximately so, thus giving the feed-wheel a longer engagement with the fabric and a stronger hold on the work than would be afforded by a flat throat-plate, and thereby insuring a very strong feed.

The thread from spool N passes through a tension device, 0, to an adjustable eye, 19, thence to a second tension device, R, thence through an eye, 8, on a small arm, S, to an eye, it, in the end of the takeup lever T,whence it passes through a guide-eye, a, to the needle 01. The eye 1) is carried by a lever, P, pivotally attached to the support 0 of the tension device 0, by the screw 10, the free end of the said lever having a small stud, 19 (see Fig. 8,) adapted to engage any one of a series of indentations, u, in the spring-post U, attached to the arm 13. Between the tension device 0 and the stud p the thread is engaged by a pulloff, V, attached to the forward end of the primary needle-bar-operating lever d, to draw from the spool N sufficient thread for each stitch, and by raising or lowering the adjustable eye 1) the amount of thread thus drawn off from the spool may be varied according to the length of the stitch being made, theamount of thread drawn off being increased by raising said eye and diminished bylowering thesame.

The take'up lever T is operated by a cam, 0 on the driving-shaft 0. As the said lever is a long one, extending from the rear end to the forward end of the machine, itis desirable to have it as light as possible and still sufficiently stiff to prevent it from bending when the machine is running rapidly, and to this end said lever is provided with a longitudinal hollow strengthening-rib, t, as more clearly shown in the detail cross-section, Fig. 7.

The feeding mechanism herein shown and described is continuous in its operation, and is thus, with the needle operating in the usual manner, adapted only for sewing fabrics which will yield somewhat while the needle is in the work, and thus prevent the bending or break ing of the needle.

The needle-bar has aswinging or horizontal movement in the line in which the work is moved by the feed, or approximately so, the horizontal movements of the needle-bar being so timed that they will occur when the needle is out of the work. Although the needle-bar frame E herein shown is a pivoted one, so that the horizontal path actually traversed by the needle is a curved one, yet the needle is so far from the center of movement of the said frame and the arc of its horizontal movement so small that for all practical purposes this horizontal movement may be considered a straight one in the line of the movement of the work. As the work moves continuously forward, it follows that the needle, after having moved to the left in Fig. 4 to make an advance stitch, is moved to the right, same figure, (or toward the operator,) to make a back or retrograde stitch, and as the horizontal movements of the needle are practicallyin the line in which the work is moved by the feeding mechanism the needle-thread :0 will be doubled upon itself between alternate pairs of stitches, producing the seam illustrated by the diagrams Figs. 9 and 10, the shuttle-thread ybeing disposed'in the same manner as the needle-thread, as is usual in lock-stitch seams. These back or retrograde stitches give great strength and elasticity to the seam, as fully set forth in my other application referred to, and thus specially adapt it for use in connection with elastic fabrics.

' If it be desired to use my machine having the continuous feed for sewing an ordinary straight-ahead seam of lock-stitches in nonelastic fabrics, the connecting-rod g and the retracting-spring a may be removed. The vertical movements of the needle-bar will then be imparted thereto in the usual manner, and the swinging frame E, in which the said bar has its vertical bearings, will permit the needle-bar and the needle to be moved horizontally forward, or in the direction of the moving work,while the needle is in thelatter, and

when the needle leaves the work the swinging frame will be retracted to its first position by the spring 6, connected with the said frame and the arm B, the backward movements of the said frame being arrested by the stop 6 The stress of the spring 0 is so slight as not to impede the forward movement of the nee dle by the work.

I am aware that it is not new to reciprocate the needle of a sewing-machine horizontally in the line of the movement of the Work when the needle is in the goods for the purposes of feeding the same, or for permitting the needle to move with the work when a continuous feed is used; but I believe it to be new to reciprocate-the needle of a sewing-machine horizontally in the line of the movement of the work when the needle is out of the goods for forming back or retrograde stitches, as in the machine hereinbefore described.

I do not wish to be understood as limiting my invention to the form of the machine herein shown, as it is obvious that the needle-bar reciprocating horizontally in the line of the feed may, if desired, be used in connection with any of the well-k nown forms of intermittentlyacting feeding devices, as well as with the special form of feeding mechanism which is illustrated and described in the present case.

Having thus described my invention, I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. In a sewing-machine, the combination, with a feeding mechanism, of a vertically and horizontally reciprocating needle-bar, the hori zontal movements of the said bar being in a line parallel with the line of movement of the work, or approximately so, and timed to occur when the needle is out of the latter, substantially as set forth.

2. In a sewing-machine, the combination, with the work-plate and bracket-arm, of a feediug'wheel above the former, a swinging needlebar frame, a needle-bar reciprocating vertically in said frame, and mechanism, substantially as described, for intermittingly moving said frame horizontally, said mechanism being constructed and timed, as set forth, to move the said needle-bar horizontally in a line parallel, or approximately so, to that in which the work is moved by the said feeding-wheel and during the intervals when the needle is out of the work.

3. The combination,with the horizontal feedshaft H, having a gear-wheel at its forward end, the vertically-movable bearing h for the said shaft, and a lifting device for said bearing, of the feeding-wheel and intermediate connecting mechanism between said shaft and wheel, whereby, when the said bearing is lifted, the said gear-wheel will be disconnected from the said intermediate connecting mechanism, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination, with the feed-hanger, the feeding-wheel, and the feed wheel-operating shaft K, of the supportingbracket M for the said wheel pivotedupon the said shaft, substantially as set forth.

5. The combination, with the feed hanger or bracket J, of the feed-wheel, the supportingbracket M, pivotally connected with the said feed-hanger and provided with a projection or lug. as m, and a spring pressing against said projection or lug, and thus adapted to hold the said feed-wheel in or out of working position, substantially as set forth.

6. The combination, with the feed-wheel, of the pivoted supporting-bracket M, carrying the said wheel and having the lug or projection m and the handle m and the spring pressing against said lug and serving to hold the said wheel in or out of working position, substantially as set forth.

7. The combination, with a scwing-n1achine feeding-wheel, of a throat-plate or work-plate having on its upper side a concave portion curved to correspond to the periphery-of the said wheel, or approximately so, whereby the said wheelis enabled to take a strong hold on the work, substantially as set forth.

8. In a sewing-machine, the combination, with a continuously-moving feeding device or wheel, ofa loosely-supported needle-bar frame, a light retracting-spring for the latter, and a stop to limit the backward movements of the said frame, under the action of the said spring, whereby, when the needle is in the work, the said frame will be free to follow the movements of the latter, but will be returned to its original position when the needle rises from the work, substantially as set forth.

9. The combination, with the needle-bar-op' erating lever 01', the tension device 0, the thread-eye 19, and the adjustable lever P, by which the said thread-eye is carried, of the pull-off V, attached to the said needle-bar lever and arranged to act on the thread between the said tension device and the said threadeye, substantially as set forth.

10. The combination, with the tension device O and its support 0, of the lever P, pivoted to said support and provided with the thread-eye p, the spring-post U, adapted to hold the said lever in place, and the movable pull-off V, arranged to act on the thread between the said eye and the said tension device, substantially as set forth.

11. The combination, with the take-up lever T, extending from the rear end of the machine to the forward end thereof,and having the 1ongitudinal hollow stiffening rib or corrugation, of the rotating cam for operating the said lever, substantially as set forth.

12. The combination, with the needle-bar and its operating mechanism, of a stationary shuttle, a longitudinally reciprocating and centrally-pivoted looper-rod having a curved guide near its center, and mechanism for operating said looper-rod, substantially as set forth.

13. The combination, with the pivoted horizontally-swinging shuttle-holder havingashelf or support on which the shuttle can rest horizontally,- of the stationary shuttle entirely supported by the said swinging holder,and thereby adapted to be moved in and out therewith, substantially as set forth.

14. The combination, with the work-plate, of the horizontally-swinging shuttle holder pivoted to the said work-plate, and having a shelf or support on which the shuttle can rest horizontally, and the stationary shuttle entirely supported by the said swinging holder, and thus adapted to be moved in and out horizontally therewith, substantially as set forth.

15. The combination, with the work-plate provided with a stop, as pin a, of a pivoted and horizontally-swinging shuttle-holder having a spring-arm adapted to engage said stop to retain said holder in position, and a shuttle supported vertically by the said holder, sub stantially as set forth.

16. The combination, with the work-plate having a stop, as pin a, of a shuttle-holder pivoted to said work-plate and provided with a spring-arm adapted to engage said stop and having a projecting finger-piece, substantially as set forth.

17. The combination, with the stationary shuttle and pivoted shuttle-holder, of alooper adapted to travel around said shuttle, a longitudinally reciprocating and centrally pivoted looper-rod by which said looper is carried, and mechanism for operating said looperrod, substantially as set forth.

18. The combination,with asewing-machine shuttle and a bobbin within the same, of a tension-spring arranged to press on the body of the thread of the bobbin within or between the flanges of the latter, and means for adjusting the tension of the said spring,substantially as set forth.

19. The combination, with a shuttle-shell having an open top or upper side, of a bobbin within the said shell, a tension-spring projecting within or between the flanges of the bobbin, and thus adapted to retain the latter in to cooperate with the said needle, a take-up 15 lever, and a grooved cam for operating said lever positively in both directions, whereby the take-up lever will be caused to follow the irregular movements of the looper at all times and when the machine is running at high rates 2o of speed, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

SATTERLEE ARNOLD.

Witnesses:

F. PORTER THAYER, PEROIVAL J. PARRIS. 

